The Good Body

"Tell the image makers and the magazine sellers and the plastic surgeons that you are not afraid. That what you fear the most is the death of imagination and originality and metaphor and passion. Then be bold and LOVE YOUR BODY. STOP FIXING IT. It was never broken."
- Eve Ensler

It's been more than a year since the last time I watched a stage play. The Good Body is something that I won't allow myself to miss (to the extent that I watch it alone, huh). I wasn't able to watch The Vagina Monologues because of lack of money then. I enjoyed reading it yet I know it's different if I've watched any of its local staging.

Reading through the show's website, I believe that this monologue is very apt these days. Nearly every Filipino woman (even men) has become conscious of the body. Amidst the economic situation of the country, people still don't mind spending for cosmetics/beauty products. There's even an overwhelming number (overwhelming growth) of skinwhitening products (with the idea that white is beautiful) as well as diet pills(just look at the TV and observe beauty shops like Watson's).

For skin whitening, we have soaps made from papaya (both green and orange/yellow), calamansi, and even pineapple. I also see a coconut-solution soap at HBC. If these soaps aren't enough, you can simply visit a derma (names like Calayan and Belo) to have skin bleaching. Oh well, you can even go to one-stop-derma-shop without even consulting a doctor.

For weight-loss on the otherhand, anyone can purchase a diet pill over-the-counter (e.g. Xenecal, Xando). It's also a breeze to trim the fat away just by going to a SPA that offers weight-loss massage services. If you've got the money and you're not afraid of operation, you can simply consult a plastic surgeon (again names like Calayan and Belo) to undergo liposuction.

I guess, the play/monologue can serve as a springboard (as it seems to be thought-provoking) in asking ourselves what a good body really is.

** Ah, time to finish writing about "Why lose weight" **

The Good Body
by Eve Ensler
starring: Monique Wilson, Pinky Amador, Juno Henares
Directed by: Rito Asilo

forthrightly funny...fascinationg, engaging...an inspiration!...passionate, frank, revealing.....Insightful, entertaining and hilarious!

Eve Ensler`s first triumph - The Vagina Monologues - ignited a movement that has exploded into a global phenomenon. Now she`s back, with a show both uprarious and delighful. In THE GOOD BODY, Eve takes a look at the outside, exploring the cultures of beauty, food and desire through the eyes of women around the world. International critics have acclaimed it as a `provocative and profoundly moving play`.

THE GOOD BODY talks about out tortured relationships with our weight, body image and self-acceptance - with voices of women from L.A. to Kabul: A young Latina candidly critiques her humiliating `spread`, a stubborn layer of fat that she calls `a second pair of thighs`. The wife of a plastic surgeon recounts being systematically reconstructed, inch by inch, by her `perfectionist husband`. An aging magazine executive, still haunted by her mother`s long ago criticism, describes her desperate pursuit of youth as she relentlessly does sit-ups.

Along the way, Eve also introduces us to women who found a hard-won peace with their bodies: an African mother who celebrates each individual body as a sign of nature`s diversity, ans Indian woman who delights in her curves. Then there is the veiled Afghani woman who is willing to risk imprisonment for a taste of ice-cream. These are just few of the inspiring stories woven through Eve`s global journey from obsession to enlightment. Ultimately, these monologues become a personal wake-up call for us to love the `good bodies` we inhabit.

Venue: Music Museum
Date/Time: November 10 & 11, 2006 9:00 PM
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